Oregon Ducks suffer season-defining loss to Washington

Just like that, Oregon’s College Football Playoff hopes have slipped away.

The No. 6 Ducks suffered a 37-34 loss to No. 23 Washington in Eugene that has drastically altered the course of their season.

Oregon had a chance to score a go-ahead touchdown on the final play of the game, but Bo Nix’s pass fell harmlessly to the turf after a back-and-forth final quarter that featured too many twists and turns to count.

How it happened

The Huskies got on the board first thanks to some early third-down struggles from the Oregon defense. Washington converted on 3rd-and-long on two separate occasions to keep its opening drive alive, and eventually found pay dirt on a 13-yard rushing touchdown from Wayne Taulapapa.

The Ducks responded with a promising drive, but stalled out in Washington territory and were forced to settle for a 43-yard field goal from Cam Lewis that cut the Huskies’ lead to 7-3.

The Huskies quickly worked their way back into Oregon territory on the ensuing drive but were forced to settle for a field goal that made it 10-3.

Oregon responded with a promising drive of its own. But disaster struck for the Ducks in the red zone when, on third down, they fumbled the snap and Washington received at its own 1-yard line. But the Oregon defense held strong and came up huge on 3rd-and-short and stuffed a run up the middle to force UW to punt.

Oregon ran the ball eight straight times on the ensuing drive and tied the game on a 10-yard QB draw up the middle from Nix.

Oregon then attempted to steal a possession when Andrew Boyle booted a surprise onside kick and the next kickoff, but Washington recovered at its own 50. Things got immediately worse for the Ducks when Penix Jr. linked up with Jalen McMillan for a 34-yard completion that put Washington at the Oregon 16.

But the Ducks’ defense held strong once again and came up with three straight stops to force a field goal that gave UW a 13-10 lead.

After halftime, Oregon regained control of the game with an explosive play.

Nix launched a 54-yard moon ball to Dont’e Thornton for a touchdown that put the Ducks ahead 17-13.

WHAT A THROW!🎯

Bo Nix hits Dont’e Thornton for a 46-yd TD to give @oregonfootball the lead!pic.twitter.com/K5XiDLJiiM

— Vrbo Fiesta Bowl (@Fiesta_Bowl) November 13, 2022

But, not to be outdone, Washington responded with a big play of its own when Penix linked up with Ja’Lynn Polk for a 76-yard score midway through the third quarter to give Washington a 27-24 lead.

From there, the game devolved into a full-on shootout.

The Ducks responded with another explosive scoring drive — this time, scoring on a 67-yard deep pass from Nix to Troy Franklin.

Washington answered by marching 98 yards down the field into Oregon territory and appeared to be on the verge of taking the lead. But Jeffrey Bassa delivered a season-defining moment and intercepted a pass at the one-yard line.

The Ducks then orchestrated a picture-perfect 18-play drive that chewed up over 10 minutes of game clock. They reached the Washington 10 and faced 3rd-and-5 before Nix suffered an apparent leg injury and had to leave the game.

Oregon was forced to settle for a field goal from Cam Lewis that pushed its lead to 34-27.

But Washington tied the game just three plays later on a 62-yard touchdown pass from Penix to Taj Davis to tie the game.

On Oregon’s next drive, Nix was unable to take the field due to his injury and Ty Thompson came on to lead the offense. The Ducks soon found themselves in 4th-and-1, and opted to go for it on fourth down. But Noah Whittington slipped while receiving the handoff, and Oregon turned the ball over on downs.

That enabled Washington to kick the go-ahead field goal with 51 seconds to go.

Nix returned to the field on Oregon’s final drive and led the Ducks to the Huskies’ 39 after a sequence of completions. But an illegal touching penalty on the penultimate play of the game wiped out a 15-yard completion to Troy Franklin, and the Ducks were forced to launch a hail mary from the Washington 39.

Nix’s final throw fell short to end the game.